


Regret

by AvatarMi_Chan



Series: Between Worlds [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Ending, Be Prepared for Tears, Cute, Fluff, Grab a Tissue Box, Lots of romance, M/M, Romance, can only end in pain, ereri, seriously, this is going to be intense
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-04
Updated: 2016-04-03
Packaged: 2018-05-31 04:06:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6454975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvatarMi_Chan/pseuds/AvatarMi_Chan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events that occurred beyond wall Maria, Eren comes to an astonishing conclusion: he is in love with his superior, Levi.<br/>Whats more, it appears that Levi returns his feelings.<br/>Despite his terse and icy exterior, Levi harbors a gentleness towards Eren that neither of them ever expected. But their happiness is short lived, because in the world of death they face, even their love cannot make it out unscathed.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Regret

At first it had been a matter of respect.

The one who was called humanity's greatest warrior: Corporal Levi. Someone of unbelievable strength and demeanor.

And unbelievable was certainly the best word to describe the corporal. Terrifying, serious, deadly, kind, gentle, caring. A series of contradictions- Eren never knew what to expect from him. Except, of course, for a single, infallible fact: Levi would do anything to stop the Titans.

And to Eren,-who had sworn to devote his life to destroying the very creatures he himself had become-well, there was really nothing more meaningful than that.

This was the conclusion Eren had come to when he had first come under Levi's care.

Then everything changed after the incident outside of the walls.

Death can change people.

Death can change a person.

And the same was true for the Lance corporal.

After Petra and the other members of the Survey Corps died, Levi grew colder. More distant.

He probably thought no one would notice.

But Eren did.

And why wouldn't he? He respected the other man after all, admired him even. Like Mikasa, Levi possessed incredible strength- a strength Eren, even for all his effort, would never be able to realize. But unlike Mikasa, Eren's admiration for Levi felt...different.

Upon discovering this, Eren's perspective of the corporal changed drastically. He began to notice the way Levi would set his jaw when he was frustrated, the way he would slightly purse his lips when upset. Eren began to notice how his superior smelled of earth and sweat with a slight tinge of mint and lemon- crisp and distinct. The way he walked. The way he talked. His eyes, his hair, his neck and shoulders and...

It was at this point that Eren began to discover something else entirely- something that both shocked and terrified him. A fact that he had been hiding behind facades of 'respect' and 'admiration'.

Something deep.

Something arcane.

Something completely beyond his control.

Eren had fallen utterly and irreversibly in love with Levi.

Perhaps it was his age. Perhaps it was his lack of understanding in the ways of romance. He really hadn't noticed it up until that point- when Levi turned himself away from everyone, even commander Erwin. By then Eren couldn't turn back. By then it was too late to try. By then he wasn't even sure if he even wanted too.

Death changes people.

And Eren had learned that the only way to fight death was to live your life with no regrets. That's why he had decided to fight. That was his conviction.

So, not long after he came to this realization, Eren decided to face his feelings head on. To face Levi, no matter the consequences.

This is the reason why he ended up standing in the doorway to the Corporal's room, staring at Levi's naked torso, unable to move.

"The hell? Did your parents never teach you to knock, Jeager?" Levi spat, gazing at Eren with a pair of grey eyes that were as sharp as steel.

"Y, yes sir." Eren stumbled, the other man's words jumpstarting his brain enough to enable him to turn around.

"Well then, next time, I suggest you fucking do it." Levi replied. There was the sound of rustling, and Eren continued to remain with his back turned, heart pounding loudly in his ears.

"Alright brat. What do you want?"

Eren swallowed, slowly turning back around. Levi was sitting atop his bed, tugging on his boots. He was now wearing the Survey Corps' standard white button up, but the added fabric didn't help much. Now all Eren could think about was how smooth and sculpted Levi's chest was beneath that fabric, and once he got thinking about that...

"I, um..."Eren tore his eyes away, focusing instead on the window just beyond his superior's shoulders. "I wanted to discuss some, er, private matters with you, sir."

Levi, having finished with his boots, leaned back in the bed, cocking his head lazily.

"Go on then," was all he said. Eren licked his lips and took a deep breathe before looking directly into Levi's eyes.

"I think... I know, I like you." he stated. For a moment there was nothing but silence, and for Eren that moment seemed to drag on for an eternity.

Then, finally, Levi spoke. "Good for you." Upon hearing the corporal's words, Eren felt a pang in his chest. "After all, I did beat the shit out of you when we first met." Levi pushed up from the bed, sauntering over to Eren. "But you know, Eren..." He reached forward, just beyond Eren's shoulder, his face so close Eren could feel the warmth emanating from the shorter man's skin.

"When you confess to someone, you really shouldn't say things like 'like' or 'love'. " He murmured into Eren's ear. "Such words are only vanities- they mean nothing." There was the sound of the door clicking shut. It was getting hard for Eren to breathe. "It's better to just show someone how you feel."

A rough hand pressed against Eren's chest, forcing him up against the door. He let out a quick gasp in shock, but before he could react more than that Levi's lips were pressed against his own.

At first it had been a matter of respect.

Eren could never have imagined that it would end up like this.  
******************************************************************  
The first thought that ran through Eren's mind was just how soft another person's mouth felt. He wasn't exactly sure what he had expected, but the heated sensation of Levi's lips against his was certainly not it.

The second thought was that Levi's mouth tasted like a combination between peppermint and butterscotch- a rather surprising and tasty combination.

The third was that this couldn't possibly be happening.

"C, corporal." Eren murmured as the other man pulled away, keeping his face close enough for their noses to touch. Levi looked up to meet Eren's questioning gaze, his silver eyes flashing.

"Surprised?" Levi breathed.

"A little." Now that was an understatement. He had never-not from the very moment he realized his feelings for the corporal to the moment he decided to confess-thought that there was even the slightest chance that Levi might return his feelings.

Yet here they were.

He caught himself staring at Levi's mouth and quickly glanced away.

Eren hadn't been prepared for this at all.

His superior chuckled, turning away and walking across the room.

"Eren, how long have you known about your interest in me?" He asked, leaning against the wall and gazing out the window.

The question was rather sudden, and for a moment Eren wasn't sure how to respond.

"Since we came back from the excursion." He replied honestly.

"Hmmm, is that so?" Levis stated. "Then, Eren, can you guess how long I've had feelings for you?"

Eren paused. He couldn't. He'd never thought that Levi might feel anything toards him- how on earth could he even come up with an answer?

"No."

Levi said nothing for a long while, simply gazing out the window as if deep in thought. Then, finally, he turned to Eren, eyes filled with some indiscernible emotion. Eren felt his heart ache at the sight.

"Funny, neither do I." Levi pushed away from the wall, choosing to alit once again atop his bed.

"Maybe it was as you said- after we returned from wall Maria. Maybe it was after we came here. Or maybe," he stopped, a small smile forming on his lips. "...maybe I've felt this way since the very beginning."

His thought struck something in Eren, and suddenly the younger man was moving forward, towards the object of his desire. With a single swift movement he lowered half his body onto the bed, taking Levi's head in his hands and pulling the other man forward until their lips met. Levi sat frozen for a moment, before melting into Eren's embrace, allowing the kiss to drag on for a fe breaths longer before they parted once again.

"It doesn't matter when." Eren spoke first, his voice filled with certainty. "It doesn't matter when- as long as you love me now."

"Love. I wonder if you could even call it that." Levi chuckled darkly. "We are soldiers, Jeager. First and foremost."

"I don't care what you call it." Eren took Levi's hand in his own, as if in taking it he could hold onto Levi forever. "It's not the name that matters. What matters is that I like you." Levi's eyes widened, and then he quickly pulled away.

"Saying something like that with such a straight face. Damn you Jeager." Levi growled, his face turning red. Now it was Eren's turn to laugh.

"Captain, you are surprisingly easy to fluster." He joked, moving to sit beside Levi on the bed. He kept the other man's hand in his.

"That's because you say such unnecessary things, you damned brat." Levi didn't turn back, and Eren glanced at the floor, a blush rising in his own cheeks. The corporal had kissed him. And, in turn, he'd kissed the corporal.

It really was too embarrassing to think about.

Just when he thought his brain was going to fume over, he felt a slight squeeze around his hand, and turned to look at Levi.

"Don't go getting distracted now, Jeager. Now that we've gotten this all figured out, I don't want you wasting another moment thinking about anything- anyone- else." His superior's eyes flashed, and Eren felt as if that look could cut right through him.

He would let it. At this point, he would let Levi do anything, as long as it meant Eren could hold his hand like this.

Another gentle squeeze, this time initiated by Eren himself.

"I really do like you, you know. Probably more than you realize." He murmured, more to himself than the man beside him. Levi leaned forward, brushing Eren's hair from his face and kissing his forehead.

"That's my line, you damned brat."

**Author's Note:**

> Well hello there fellow Ereri/Riren fan! Thank you for reading my fic!
> 
> First off, I would just like to say that as the overview of this piece, I almost wanted to write the overview as:
> 
> Boy meets Heichou.
> 
> Heichou has some sexy ass legs.
> 
> Boy decides he wants to tap that. Heichou agrees.
> 
> Let the smexy times begin.
> 
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
> 
> But, you know, the actual piece is going to be way more serious than that, so...
> 
> I'll let you get to it! If you like, say so! If you want me to write a fic about a pairing you like, just ask! I love talking to fellow shippers just as much as I like writing about the ships themselves!
> 
> *Ahem* MiChan signing out!


End file.
